


Coming to their senses

by Aleigh75



Series: After the Fade [1]
Category: Angel: the Series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Some angst, ignores the comics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 19:02:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18923146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aleigh75/pseuds/Aleigh75
Summary: Buffy and Xander finally get together when they get a night alone after Dawn graduates high school. (I suck at summaries and titles!)





	Coming to their senses

**Author's Note:**

> This is actually the first fanfic I ever wrote, at least ten years ago. I originally posted it as MamaBear on AdultFanfiction.net, under the name 'Reditum ad se' but when I realized I couldn't even find the post over there (luckily my bff had the link), I decided to re-post it over here, since this is where pretty much everything else I've written is posted. To be honest, I don't know where i was even going with the original title (It makes absolutely no sense with this story) so I've changed it, and I also did some MAJOR re-writing/editing, because...well, it was the first fanfic I ever wrote, and it was extremely cringy. LOL 
> 
> Basically, this takes place a few weeks to a month after "Not Fade Away," with Buffy and Xander finally coming to their damn senses about their feelings for each other. This is actually one of a pair of stories, the other being much longer and Dawn-centric, so a few things that probably seem like I just left them out, like Xander's phone conversation with Dawn, are actually told in that story, which I plan to also post here as soon as I fix a weird formatting glitch that happened with the punctuation on AFFN. I finished writing that side of the story quite a bit later than I finished this, so it doesn't need anywhere near as much tweaking, but it is 4 times as long as this, so fixing the formatting is taking me forever!
> 
> Oh, and I honestly don't know why Buffy was going to be moving to Oxford and leaving Xander in Rome. I'm sure I had some sort of plot based justification for that, but I can't for the life of me remember what it is. They needed some angst, though, so I just left it in. ;)

“Buffy! If you don’t hurry up I’m so leaving without you!” Xander Harris snickered at the angry shout from the hallway as he finished adjusting his necktie. His girls were at it again. He hoped Buffy wouldn’t give Dawn too hard a time today. The youngest Summers was understandably excited about finally graduating from high school, and her excitement had been manifesting itself in the form of extreme bossiness for the last few days. Normally, Buffy would have been amused as he was at her sister’s antics, but lately she had been acting kind of strange…unusually quiet, and snappy for no apparent reason.

Hearing the two girls talking in the hall, he took a quick look in the mirror, and checked one last time to be sure that his eye patch was in place. When he heard the loud thunking sound of high heels on hardwood flooring moving toward his door, he chuckled. Poor Buffy. He suspected Dawn had taken to wearing heels recently for the sole purpose of driving home the fact that she was an adult now; but Buffy was developing a real complex from having her sister towering over her all the time. Sighing sadly at his reflection, and deciding it wasn’t going to improve no matter how long he stared disgustedly at his patch, Xander opened the door, and slipped into the hallway…just in time to hear Dawn say, with a scornful snort “Pfft! Right, like I really want to see  _ that  _ again. Ew! No thank you. It’s Xander; it was like walking in on Dad or something!” Ah yes, Buffy was still harping on the ‘naked Xander’ incident the week before, when Dawnie had accidentally walked in on him when he was air drying on his bed after a particularly long, hot shower. Why the hell hadn’t she gotten over that yet? Completely oblivious to her sister, who was looking warningly at her (quite obviously trying to alert the brunette to his presence), Dawn shuddered visibly, and turned back toward Xander’s door. She jumped when she found him leaning against the doorframe.

He looked at her pointedly, with one brow raised questioningly, “Gee, you’d better watch it Dawnie…compliments like that might go right to my head!” He laughed off the slight sting he felt from her remarks. 

“I didn’t mean-“ Dawn stammered, “I was just-you’re not that bad, I just don’t-” She now had the wide-eyed look all the Scoobies got when anyone even remotely touched on the subject of his appearance. Xander really hated that look.

Xander snorted, “Again with the compliments!” He shook his head sadly. “No wonder I can’t get a date to save my life. God, I hope it never comes to that...dating to save my life. I’d be doomed!”

Dawn frowned. Looking sadly at him, she reached for him, only to be cut off at the pass by her perfectly made up older sister, who swept in, hooked her arm in his, and pulled him away from the doorframe. “Xan, the only reason you can’t get a date is girls are afraid to ask you, and you never ask them,” she said, in a tone that would clearly accept no arguments.

Xander automatically reached up, and adjusted the black patch covering his missing left eye. “Yeah…they’re afraid, but not of asking me out,” he muttered softly. Pulling away from Buffy, he began walking briskly toward their front door. He knew she meant well, but how could he ask out any other women when he was only interested in the _  one  _ woman who had absolutely no romantic interest in him. Buffy had made herself perfectly clear, almost immediately after they met, that she would never see him as anything more than a friend. He’d moved on, of course; but with Anya gone, and after living with Buffy for just over a year now, he had found all his old feelings sneaking back. However, the teenage infatuation he had felt in high school (which was mostly based on the fact that Buffy was a gorgeous little blonde with an exciting secret life), was long gone. In its place were stronger feelings, ones based on his years of close friendship with her, and getting to know the real girl that lived under the cold, hard as nails exterior she often hid behind. 

Maybe after she and Dawn moved to London, he would finally be able to move on; find someone who didn’t mind that he looked like a reject from a bad pirate movie. Someone who didn’t know about the life he had lived on the Hellmouth all those years. Someone who wasn’t a smart, funny, amazing warrioress who would gladly (and had) fight to the death to defend those she cared about. As he pushed open the front door of the their luxurious apartment, his shoulders slumped dejectedly. Who was he kidding? Maybe he should take Giles up on his offer to join the council. There was nothing for him here in Rome without her. Being with her only as her goofy ‘Xander-shaped friend’ was better than not being with her at all.

Just then, Dawn stepped up beside him, and whispered, “She feels the same way about you, you know,”

“Huh?” Startled, he turned toward her, “Who? Wha-?”

“Oh, like everyone doesn’t know,” Dawn snickered. Looking around like she thought they were being watched, she leaned over, and whispered, “Tonight…when she starts crying because she feels guilty that she’s relieved she doesn’t have to play mom to me anymore…have her look in the back of the freezer. She’ll be yours forever. And you owe me a hundred bucks,”

Buffy. She was talking about Buffy. Buffy felt the same way about him? Xander stared at Dawn in disbelief; his arm still raised to try to hail an approaching cab. Then her other words registered. Look in the freezer? Ha! His evil scheme had worked. He’d dropped hints weeks ago that he would like to get Buffy some of her favorite ice cream, it was just too bad it wasn’t available in Rome, blah, blah, blah. He knew Dawn was never one to back down from a challenge, and she had come through. She probably even thought it had been her idea. However, the price seemed a bit steep, “A hundred bucks?!” 

Dawn laughed at him, and flipped her long brown hair back over her shoulder. He watched in mild horror as she hitched up her skirt slightly, waved her hand, and then climbed, giggling, into the cab that had screeched to a halt in front of her. Where the hell had his little Dawnie learned  _ that _  particular trick? 

Before he could worry too long about who he was going to have to kill for corrupting his ‘little sister,’ Buffy appeared at his side, and grabbed his hand. Looking down at her, he smiled softly at the sight of her tear filled eyes. Leaning over, he kissed the top of her head, and murmured, “Are you going to be alright?”

“No,” she admitted with a sniffle. Wiping her cheeks, she added, “But I’ve got you here to pick up the pieces, right?” She winked at him, and climbed into the car after her sister.

“Always,” Xander sighed, and climbed in after his girls.

*******

Xander desperately tried to comfort the tiny blonde, who was sobbing into his shirt as they walked clumsily into their apartment. “Buffy, sweetie, stop crying! It’s okay…she graduated. You’re acting like she-” 

“Like what?” Buffy hissed angrily, cutting him off mid sentence. “Like she died? That’s an awful thing to say considering-” her head popped up, and she shot him a watery, but still frightening, glare.

“No! Gods no!” Xander held his hands up in surrender. “I was going to say you’re acting like she got married or something. Not  _ that _ .” He shuddered. Like the rest of the Scoobies, he had grown weary of making casual comments about death, since they were, in his experience, far too likely to come true.

“Oh,” Buffy murmured, smiling apologetically for her outburst for approximately two seconds before her face fell again. “Oh god! Now she’s going to get  _ married _ !” she wailed suddenly, crying harder than ever, and burying her face in his shirt again.

“Buffy!” Xander laughed, unable to help himself. “Tonight? She doesn’t even have a boyfriend! Don’t you think you’re rushing things a bit?” Still laughing to himself, he managed to usher Buffy over to their comfy leather sofa, and settled her against the mountain of fluffy pillows piled at one end…her favorite spot.

“I know,” Buffy sniffled, wiping at her face. “I’m being an idiot. I just didn’t expect it to hit me like this. She’s all grown up now. I’m not really responsible for her anymore…” She trailed off, looking stricken.

“You’re finally free to live your own life,” Xander nodded thoughtfully, “and you feel guilty because you’re relieved.” He smiled softly at her as he plopped down in his own favorite comfy spot…at large, lushly upholstered recliner directly across from the sofa where Buffy was sitting.

Buffy narrowed her eyes at him, then a slow smile spread across her face, which gradually lit up as it rarely had in the nine years since she had been called as a Slayer. “How do you always do that?” she asked suspiciously, although her eyes twinkled with mischief.

“Do what?” Xander asked innocently, enjoying this sudden, almost playful mood. Especially after the recent flood of tears that had soaked his best dress shirt.

“You always know exactly what I’m feeling,” Buffy answered, smiling affectionately at him.

“Well, I have years of practice,” Xander pointed out, grinning.

“Dawn told you,” Buffy shot back triumphantly.

Xander laughed. “She mentioned it.” He nodded. “But I had already figured it out on my own. I figured out a long time ago that it was a good idea to learn how to read your emotions. Best to avoid a cranky Slayer, you know.” He grinned mischievously, and lightly tapped his eye patch, a signal he had worked out to let his friends know when he would wink, if he could.

Buffy snickered. “Oh, really? If you’re so good, what am I thinking now?” she challenged.

Xander nodded his head in the general direction of the kitchen. “Look in the back of the freezer.” he  replied, grinning playfully.

Buffy’s eyes widened, and she jumped to her feet, bolting down the hallway. “No freaking way!” Xander laughed at her loud, joyful shout. “Xander!” she squealed as she breezed back into the room a few moments later. “How did you find Phish Food in Rome?” she asked, plopping back down on the sofa, and tossing one of the two pints of chocolaty goodness in his general direction, followed quickly by a spoon. She was so engrossed in opening her own carton, she failed to notice when the spoon smacked him squarely in the middle of his eye patch. “What’s so funny?” she asked, shoveling a massive spoonful of chocolate and marshmallow into her mouth.

Xander snickered, gazing fondly at the tiny blonde as she happily devoured the treat. “It was worth it.” he murmured, opening his own pint.

“Mmm?” Buffy grunted questioningly around the spoon in her mouth.

“Well, Dawnie’s charging me like a hundred bucks for doing my dirty work for me. She probably thinks it was her idea, but I planted the seeds a few weeks ago, and it worked. She’s so easy!” he replied casually, reaching across the space between them to wipe a drop of melted chocolate from her chin with his thumb.

Buffy’s eyes nearly popped out of her head, and she broke into a coughing fit. “Y-you paid her $100 for two pints of ice cream?” she gasped when she could breathe again. “That’s highway robbery! That little-”

“I’m paying her $100 for helping me cheer you up tonight,” Xander corrected her with a warm smile. “I knew you’d need it.” Frowning slightly, he added, “I’m not sure why she was willing to give me the credit for the whole thing, though. I would’ve paid her back for it anyway.”

Buffy stared at him in awe for several seconds. “Xan…” she murmured finally, her voice breaking on a sob. “That’s so s-sweet-” She trailed off, silent sobs shaking her thin shoulders.

“Oh no…Buffy, don’t cry!” Xander quickly crossed the room to sit beside her, and pulled her into his arms. “Please, don’t cry!” He began making soothing noises, and rubbing her back. “She’s gonna be fine. She’s all grown up, and you did a great job with her. Your mom would be so proud of both of you.” He sighed sadly as she let out a pained gasp, “It’s not even like you’re losing her, really. You’re both going to London.” He sighed heavily, feeling his own tears threatening despite his best, manly efforts to stay strong.

Then, Buffy sat up, scowled, and shouted, “That’s the problem, Xander!"

“Huh?” Xander sheepishly wiped a few tears from his eye, hoping she wouldn’t notice. “I guess my Buff-o-meter is on the fritz, ‘cuz I have no idea what you're talking about right now.”

With a knowing smile, Buffy silenced him by gently placing her hand over his mouth. “I know you don’t. I thought…I thought I could do this. I didn’t think it would be so hard,” she babbled nervously. Unable to speak, and unwilling to remove her hand from his lips, Xander just raised an eyebrow, and cocked his head to one side, hoping his concern was obvious in his dark brown eye. Taking a deep breath, Buffy continued quietly. “It really hit me just now...how much I’m going to hate leaving you,” she moaned. “I-I don’t think I can. Leave you, I mean. I-I guess I’ve been trying to convince myself it’ll all be all right, but I can’t.” She began crying again, her hand dropping limply to her lap.

Xander stared at her, amazement and confusion fighting for top place in his whirling emotions. He felt a teeny, tiny, momentary spark of hope, as well. A hope he tried to stomp to death before Buffy could do it for him, as she had in the past. “Um, Buff? What are you talking about?” He asked uncomfortably, moving to pull away from her. 

Buffy quickly grabbed his arm, stopping his retreat. “Xan, just, um, give me a chance. Let me explain…if I can?” she asked softly. When he nodded, and relaxed slightly into the cushions behind him, she asked, “Did I ever tell you about my old boyfriend in LA?”

Xander’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline, and he scoffed, “Uh, yeah…I’ve met Angel…hung out with him for years and all, remember? I think ‘old’ is a bit of an understatement,” he reminded her, smirking sarcastically.

“No, not Angel,” Buffy swatted him playfully on the arm, then grew more serious. “I had a boyfriend…my first boyfriend…when I lived in LA before…”

“Before you became a Slayer?” he asked, curious despite himself, and wondering where the hell she was going with this little trip down memory lane.

“Um,it was just about the same time, actually. I met him literally like the day before. He helped me when I had to fight Lothos. That’s the vamp who killed M-Merrick,” she sighed sadly. “H-he was my-”

“He was your first Watcher,” Xander nodded acknowledgingly, and gestured for her to continue.

“Right.” Buffy smiled gratefully at him, seeming surprised that he’d paid that much attention when she’d told him about her life before Sunnydale, back when he first found out she was the Slayer. “Anyway, Pike-” She stopped abruptly, and raised a finger at him. “Not. A. Word. That was his name, I can’t help it if his parents hated him.” Xander snorted, and she shook her finger at him. “Not a word! His name isn’t important. What  _ is _ important is that he was just a normal, human guy. Kind of a loner. None of the popular crowd wanted anything to do with him. Actually,  _ no one  _ really wanted anything to do with him. And…well…he’d dropped out actually.” She waved her hand in front of her face frustratedly. “Again, not important. Anyway, he helped me out the night I burned down the gym at my old school. A nest of vampires had trapped a bunch of students in there during a dance. He helped get the kids out, while I fought the vamps. He helped me save all those people who were so horrible to him. And he did it all for me. Because he loved me, and he wanted to watch my back; even though he knew the-the risks. His best friend was one of the vamps, you know? He was turned right after Pike and I met, and Pike had to kill him that night.” She sighed sadly, and gently squeezed Xander’s hand when he let out a pained grunt at her words, the image of Jesse’s stunned expression just before he turned to dust flashing through his mind. “Yeah. It was bad. It was really, really bad.” She took a deep, settling breath, and continued, “I loved him. So much. Angel might have been my ‘first,’ but Pike was my first love. I’m sure he would have been the other first too, if we’d just had more time together…” She trailed off, staring into empty space, as if seeing again the events that had changed her life so much.

“He died,” Xander realized suddenly.

Buffy nodded. “A-after we torched the gym because there were too many of them in there to stake them all. I was so stupid. I thought it was over. I mean, Merrick was gone, and no one had really explained to me how big this Slayer thing really is. When we rode away that night, I thought it was our big happy ending. Driving off into the sunset…well, sunrise, actually. But we hadn’t killed all of Lothos minions. They saw what happened at the school, and ambushed us when we rode his motorcycle away from the school. They threw nails on the road, and he didn’t see them. The tires blew out, and the bike flipped. I was okay, and I was so pissed that they ruined my big exit that I killed them all…no problem. But P-Pike hit a tree when we crashed. Headfirst…” She dropped her face to her hands, and took several deep breaths, while Xander stared at her in horror.

“Buffy, God…I had no idea,” he began, reaching for her.

“He wss 17 years old, and he died because he was helping me. I loved him so much, and I couldn’t protect him,” she sniffled. Taking a deep breath, she lifted her chin, and looked him in the eye. “I think a part of me died with him. That was when I went so ‘crazy,’” she muttered, accompanying the word with air quotes, “...that my parents decided to send me to the institution, you know? I guess the only way I could keep going after all that was to not open myself up to that kind of situation again.”

“Uh, Buffy?” Xander frowned in confusion. “You always let people help you. You always let your  _ boyfriends _ help you.”

Buffy smiled, and placed her hand over his mouth once again. “I know. But I couldn’t let myself really fall in love with a normal guy again. I couldn’t stop you from helping me, but I could protect myself from-” she cut herself off, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. “I thought I could keep myself from feeling that way again.”

Xander pulled back, pushing her hand off his mouth.“What about Riley?” he snorted. “Didn’t you love him?”

“Well, for one thing, he was hardly a normal guy. And for another, I never loved him. I mean, I wanted to, of course, but I don’t think anyone was really fooled. Well, except maybe myself, for a while.” She shrugged sheepishly. “And before you start in on Angel and Spike, just...don’t. I don’t know what I was thinking. I mean, with Angel, I think I really just wanted a ‘hero’ I could rely on who was as strong as me. Someone I didn’t have to worry about.”

“Well, that really worked out well for you,” Xander pointed out quietly, but his voice was more gentle than before.

“Yeah,” Buffy conceded, rolling her eyes. “Don’t get me wrong. I loved him, but sometimes I think I loved the idea of him…the potential of what he could be…more than I loved Angel himself.”

“I can see why he’d be appealing.” Xander nodded, and then quickly added, “After what you’d been through, I mean.”

Buffy smirked at him, “And as for Spike…I loved him, too, in his own way. Maybe more than I loved Angel, because I got to know the real Spike before I fell for him. But I realize now that I loved him more in the way that you should love a best friend. I shouldn’t have used him like I did. I loved him as a friend,” she repeated sadly.

“Like you do me.” Xander nodded again, understandingly. “I’m sure he didn’t mind,” he said, patting her on the arm. Forcing a playful grin on his face, he flipped his eyebrows, and added, “In fact, speaking for all of your best friends, including Willow, I’m sure none of us would mind if you wanted to use us, too.”

Buffy grabbed his hand, snapping, “Don’t say that! I could never do that! Not with you! You’re…I…” Jumping to her feet she sobbed. “I’m not saying this right. You’re not getting it! Why can’t you just see-” Glancing up at him, she cringed visibly, and then ran out of the room, in tears.

Still sitting on the sofa, Xander stared dazedly after Buffy. Finally lowering his gaze to the melted tubs of ice cream sitting on the coffee table in front him, he sighed, “Okay, maybe it wasn’t worth it after all.” Picking up the nearly empty cartons, he stood and shuffled wearily into the kitchen to throw them away. 

As he washed the sticky mess off his hands, he glanced up at the darkened window over the sink. “Oh shit!” He swore, quickly adjusting his eye patch to cover the corner of his sunken eyelid. He hated when it shifted like that. Suddenly, anger filled him, as he realized that Buffy must have run away from him because she’d seen it, too. Glaring at his reflection, he muttered in a high pitched voice, “‘I could never do that! Not with you!’” Growling, he added, “Of course not, I’m a hideous freak!” he shouted, slamming his fist into the offending image, and shattering the glass. 

Screaming...more from pent up frustration and emotional pain than from the physical pain in his bleeding hand, Xander crumpled to his knees on the cold marble floor. 

A few moments later, he was vaguely aware that Buffy had entered the room. Her words didn’t register until they took on a note of panic. “Oh god! Xander? Xan, please, tell me what it did to you! Do you need an ambulance? Where are you hurt?” she questioned him frantically as she grabbed his shoulders, and carefully rolled him onto his back, pushing his legs down slightly so she could examine his stomach. The moment she touched him, he realized he was sobbing, and managed to force himself to stop, staring blankly off to the side to avoid her gaze.

Finding no injuries other than his bleeding fist, Buffy frowned. “Xan? What happened?” Relaxing slightly from her defensive mode, she grabbed Xander’s head in both hands, forcing him to face her. Her eyes welled up with tears as she took in his expression. “Sweetie, why did you do this to yourself?” she whimpered, running her hands soothingly through his hair. When he still found himself unable to respond with more than a slight head shake (for fear that he would break down crying again), she simply grabbed a dish towel from a nearby drawer, folded it up, lifted his head from the floor, and slid the makeshift pillow into place. “Xan, I’m gonna go get the first aid stuff out of the bathroom so I can fix you up. I’ll be right back, okay, babe?”

“Right...babe...I’m ugly,” Xander mumbled under his breath once he thought she was gone.

Buffy’s face immediately came back into view. “Ugly? What’s ugly?” She frowned in confusion. Glancing over at the jagged hole in the window, she let out a horrified gasp. Dropping back down at Xander’s side she yelled, “No! You hear me, Xander Harris? I know what you’re thinking, and you are _ not _ ugly! How could you even think that? Are you insane?! God! You’re beautiful, you big idiot!” After a short pause, she amended this declaration with a small giggle. “Well, I guess ‘handsome’ would be a better word, huh?” Lightly ruffling his hair, she rose again, and this time he watched carefully as she left the kitchen, heading in the direction of the hall bathroom, where they kept an enormous first aid kit that would have been overkill in anyone’s home but a Slayer’s. 

Returning to the kitchen, she frowned thoughtfully at Xander. Apparently making up her mind, she spun on her heel, and left the room, returning almost immediately without the first aid kit. “Come on,” she murmured gently. Kneeling beside him, she gently pulled him into a sitting position, and then slipped his uninjured arm over her shoulder. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she hauled him to his feet, and proceeded to half walk, half carry him down the hall toward her bedroom.

When they shuffled into her room, and she began to lay him down on the bed, Xander finally began to snap out of his slight daze, which he demonstrated in the form of struggling to get away from her. “No! I’ll bleed on your pretty bed.” he muttered inanely.

Buffy snorted, “Oh, like I’ve never bled on it? Please, I’m very good at picking bedding that hides stains. And, oh my god, I so meant all of that in a wounded Slayer way, not a gross, TMI girly way!” Laughing nervously, she pushed him back down on her flowered comforter. When he finally gave in, and laid back against her pillows with a resigned sigh, she smiled, and ran her fingers through his hair again. “Do you want to talk about it now? I mean…we are so going to talk about it, but we can put it on hold for a bit if you want.” Buffy moved around the room, getting a basin of clean water and some towels from the attached bathroom, and placing them on her nightstand.

“I’m sorry about the window,” Xander mumbled, refusing to look her in the eye.

“Pfft! Like I care about the window. I happen to know an excellent carpenter. He can fix anything…and he kinda owes me a window,” she said with a wink. “Lemme have your hand,” she requested, motioning for him to roll on his uninjured side, facing her, as she placed the bowl of water beside him on the bed. “This is probably going to hurt,” she said apologetically before easing his wounded hand into the water.

“Shit!” Xander hissed in pain, and clenched his fists instinctively, which caused him to yelp loudly as the movement caused the broken glass embedded in his knuckles to cut further into his flesh. 

“Shh…try not to move it, hon,” Buffy ordered gently. Squinting at his hand as she lifted it from the water, she reached blindly into the kit beside her, and pulled out a large pair of tweezers. “Hold on, I’ve got to get all this glass out.”

Xander clenched his jaw, and closed his eye tightly as she carefully removed the small shards, and placed them on a small towel she’d spread on the bed beside the bowl. “Fuck, that hurts!” he cursed as she pulled out an especially large piece.

“Well, maybe now you’ll learn to quit hitting poor, innocent buildings! Punching the wall of Will and Tara’s dorm was bad enough, but  _ this _ is...” she trailed off, squinting at his hand. “...a mess!” she declared with a frown. “I think you might need stitches,” she added, gazing critically at the deep gash the larger piece of glass had caused.

“No! I hate hospitals! Just use the adhesive stuff, okay?” Xander pleaded. He’d always hated hospitals, and had avoided them like the plague since losing his eye the year before. “Please?”

“I’ll try it, but if it doesn’t hold, you’re getting stitches!” Buffy muttered, dabbing at his cuts with clean gauze to try to stop the bleeding. “I think all the glass is out now,” she murmured, studying his knuckles closely. “But this deep cut won’t stop bleeding, and the adhesive won’t work if the skin isn’t dry.”

"You're just saying that 'cuz it's $50 a pop," Xander chuckled, and Buffy rolled her eyes at him. 

“Sounds like you need some vamp spit,” A soft, tired-sounding voice commented from the doorway, causing them both to whip their heads around, and stare in shock at the battered figure leaning heavily against the wooden frame.

“Spike?!” Buffy shrieked, then looked quickly at Xander as if to confirm that he was seeing the apparition as well. Dazed, he nodded slightly, leaning up onto his elbow to better face the doorway.

“Buffy, Xan…it’s, uh, good to see ya,” The blond vampire said, ducking his head sheepishly.

“Spike? But you’re dead! You died!” Xander gasped, finding his voice.

“A couple of times,” Spike nodded, acknowledging his words with his typical sarcasm, though his tone lacked its usual bite. “But I guess it didn’t take. I’m back.” He shrugged uncertainly. “Uh, you’re bleedin’ on the rug, mate.” He nodded toward Xander’s hand, which was hanging, momentarily forgotten, over the side of the bed.

“Shit!” Xander jerked the dripping appendage back over the bowl of bloody water. Looking back up at the vampire, he waited for some kind of snide comment about blood soup, but was surprised when the vampire merely bit his lip nervously, and walked further into the room.

“Um, I came here because I didn’t know where else to go,” he said softly. Turning to Buffy, he smiled sadly. “We’re in trouble, Angel’s hurt real bad, Pet. I didn’t know where else to go.” His shoulders began to shake slightly, and his voice cracked. “Can you help us?” he asked pleadingly.

“Of course,” Xander surprised even himself by answering immediately. “Where is Angel?”

Spike moved to stand beside the bed, next to Buffy. “He’s downstairs, in the car. I need help to carry him up all those steps. But first, I think we need to stop that bleeding.” He cocked his head questioningly. “What happened, Harris?” he asked, with what seemed like genuine concern.

Xander bit back a snarky comment about the vampire’s uncharacteristic behavior, sensing that the other man was near the end of his rope. “I, uh, cut it on some glass,” he muttered, as Spike took the cotton gauze and vial of Dermabond from Buffy, who was looking somewhat dazedly back and forth between the two men.

“Um, well, I was serious…about the vamp spit. It can stop bleeding faster than anything. Only if the vamp wants it to of course. It would be damned inconvenient if it happened during dinner,” Spike added with a wink before sobering again. “Uh, if you want…I can…” he began hesitantly, nodding toward Xander’s hand again.

“Yes, please,” Xander answered quickly, desperate to avoid a trip to the hospital. When Spike’s head shot up in shock, he shrugged.  “I mean, it’s gross, yeah, but I really don’t want to have to go to the hospital,” he explained, making a face, and Spike snickered.

“Okay, then…” The vampire shocked him by using the gauze to blot up as much of the blood as possible before he worked his jaw a few times to build up plenty of saliva, and then quickly and gently licked the deepest of the cuts until they stopped bleeding. Pulling back, he studied Xander’s hand closely, then opened the liquid stitches, and applied some to the deepest cut before carefully wrapping a bandage around Xander’s knuckles. “So, what did you hit, and why?” he asked quietly as he finished taping it in place.

Xander pulled his hand back, and peeked under the bandage. “Window. I saw something nasty in it,” he mumbled, avoiding Spike’s gaze.

Spike looked at Buffy, obviously realizing there was more to the story. Xander reluctantly followed his gaze, and found her eyes on him, her expression a mixture of sadness and…longing? “Um, Buffy? Can you help me carry Angel up? I hate to ask, but I’m kind of knackered, and I don’t think I can get him by myself,” Spike asked quietly, interrupting the moment.

Buffy snapped out of her Xander-staring session, and nodded. “Of course.” She smiled warmly at him. “Xander, you should probably call-”

“Dawnie, Wills, and Giles,” Xander finished for her, nodding knowingly. “I’m on it.” He sat up on the edge of the bed, and swayed dizzily. “Whoa! Holy blood loss, Batman!” he groaned, easing himself back down on the pillows.

“Don’t get up!” Buffy ordered. Grabbing her cell phone from the charger on her nightstand, she handed it to him with an affectionate smile. “You’re not leaving this bed, mister! I’ll be right back…I’m gonna go get you some-” she trailed off in amazement as Spike suddenly moved between them, and shoved a huge glass of orange juice into Xander’s un-injured hand.

“There you go. Sorry I couldn’t find any cookies,” the blond joked. Turning to Buffy he asked, “Ready, Pet?”

Buffy looked questioningly at Xander, who responded after taking a giant gulp from his glass. Smacking his lips, he nodded at her, and held up the phone.  “Okay, but don’t think you’re getting out of that talk just because the non-evil, not-so-dead are here!” she warned him before leaving the room, trailing behind an anxious looking Spike.

Xander sighed wearily, and flipped open the phone, bracing himself for a lot of shouting.

*****

Several minutes later, just as he was hanging up after his last, nearly ear-splitting phone call (Willow had nearly talked his ear off, of course), Buffy crept quietly into the room, closing the door behind her. “Are they coming?” she asked as she carried the bowl and medical supplies back to her bathroom. When she came back, she sat down on the bed beside him, reached out, and caressed the left side of his face. He flinched involuntarily, earning himself a brief frown. 

“Yeah…Dawnie should be here soon. I called her first. Willow and Giles are catching a flight in a few hours. They should be here sometime tomorrow morning,” he replied. Catching Buffy’s hand, he squeezed it gently. “So, he’s back. I bet you’re happy,” he commented, trying and failing to keep his tone neutral.

“Well, yeah. He’s one of my best friends,” Buffy replied, shrugging. “Of course I’m glad he’s not dead.”

“So, what happened anyway?” Xander asked, slowly sitting up to lean against her padded headboard, relieved to find that his head felt a lot better after downing the juice Spike had brought him earlier.

“Apparently he got stuck in the amulet, which someone mailed to Angel a few weeks after the fight. Spike popped out as a ghost, and stayed that way for a few months. After a while, another package came, and when they opened it, he turned all solid-like again. Then, about a month ago, Angel picked a fight with the Senior Partners of Wolfram and Hart, who pretty much unleashed an army of demons on them. They just barely survived the fight.” She sighed wearily, then mumbled. “Wesley, Gunn and Fred are all dead.”

“Gods!” Xander exclaimed, horrified.

“Yeah,” Buffy nodded sadly. “Well, Fred actually died a few months ago. That’s why Angel called Giles that time. Some kind of hell god was taking over her body. He just wanted h-help.” She sniffled, and Xander sighed sadly, remembering the sweet brunette woman they’d befriended during their brief stay in LA after their battle with the First.

“Fuck!” he muttered. “Giles is gonna feel like shit when he finds out.”

Buffy nodded again. “Spike says there was nothing anyone could have done, but still…” Rubbing her eyes wearily, she continued, “Apparently, the hell god used her body as a host so it could take physical form, and Fred was killed in the process. Illyria…the hell god…helped when they killed off all of the Senior Partners’ representatives in LA. She actually saved Spike and Angel when the Partners struck back.”

“Is she here too?” Xander asked curiously.

“No,” Buffy shook her head. “Spike said he found her body laying beside Wes’s when he came to. She killed herself! He thinks some of Fred’s emotions must have stayed with her, because Illyria kind of fell in love with Wes, too.”

“Fred and Wes finally got together?” Xander asked, smiling sadly.

Buffy shook her head. “No. Well, yes, but she died before they ever had a real chance.” Tears began flowing down her cheeks again, and Xander began to wonder if she’d ever stop again, as much as she’d cried that night. His thoughts were rather pleasantly interrupted when she suddenly wiped her eyes, and moved over to straddle his legs, staring down at him thoughtfully.

“Do you want your bed back now?” he asked awkwardly, wanting to break the too-long silence that followed. Buffy shook her head, and he slowly moved to rest his left hand on her knee. “Um, then what’s with the staring?” he asked, nervously ducking his head away from her gaze.

“I’m trying to figure out why you’re so convinced you’re ugly,” she murmured, reaching out to stroke his cheek.

“Well, that’s an abrupt change of subject,” he snorted, shifting around uncomfortably. Why couldn’t she just drop it already? It wasn’t like he meant to break the window, or hurt himself in the process.

“No, it’s a change back to the really important subject,” Buffy corrected him firmly.

“Your dead boyfriend just turned up  _ not _ dead, and you think my vanity is the important topic of conversation?” He let out a bark of sarcastic laughter, and rolled his eye.

“Not my boyfriend,” she muttered dismissively. Placing her finger under his chin, she gently forced him to look at her. “I hurt you earlier, and I didn’t mean to. I think…I think you misunderstood where I was going with the whole ‘Buffy’s life before the Hellmouth’ story,” Buffy began, chewing her lip. “I never meant to hurt you, I just got a little freaked, and pulled a Buffy…ran away again.” She smiled sheepishly at him, and his stomach lurched with sudden, gut wrenching anxiety. Or possibly excitement. Probably both, he realized somewhat hysterically.

“You saw what’s under the patch, and you realized you’d almost made a move on an ugly freak!” Xander mumbled, once again ignoring the slightly hopeful feeling before it could get out of hand. “I get it, I understand! I wouldn’t want to look at this either.” He angrily flipped the patch out of the way, and glared defiantly at her. That should get her to stop yanking his chain like this...Buffy, however, looked calmly at his empty eyelid. To his horror, she began to giggle helplessly, holding her sides and shaking slightly. “What’s so funny?” He growled, flipping the patch back in place.

“That’s it? That’s the big hideous deformity you’ve been so worried about people seeing?” Buffy snickered.

“What?” Xander stared at Buffy in disbelief. “Are you kidding me? How can you laugh at this?” he growled, irritably jerking his thumb toward his face

“Xan, baby…I didn’t run off earlier because I got a glimpse of your eye. Well, I did, but not because I was grossed out or anything.” Buffy leaned forward, and slid the patch off his head completely, ignoring his frantic attempts to stop her. “You. Are. Gorgeous,” she said, lightly kissing around the sunken lid with each word. “I ran off because I was about to tell you how I feel about you, but when I saw your eye, it reminded me how willing you are to put your life in danger for me. You lost your eye helping me! So, I panicked again. I started thinking how you could die, just like Pike. Just like a lot of other people who got involved with my mess. I’m so sorry I made you think your eye grossed me out. It never could; it just reminds me what a good, brave, loyal, stubborn man you are.” She finished talking at last, and smiled down at him affectionately.

“Wha-huh?” Xander cocked his head to the side, and stared at her dazedly, vaguely aware that a slow, doofy smile was beginning to spread across his face. Meanwhile, his brain was still frantically trying to translate what it seemed she had just said. He tried to remember if he had hit his head on anything when he broke the window. “What are you saying?” he whispered finally, part of his brain silently willing her to please confirm what he thought he’d just heard, while the other part berated himself for getting his hopes up higher than ever before.

“I’ve been trying not to fall in love with you for years, Xan. I’m tired of fighting it. I’m still afraid something could happen to you, or to me. I mean, really, who here has actually died? Twice, even!” She giggled, and he allowed his smile to become full blown. “But I realized earlier, when you mentioned Oxford, how much of my not wanting to go there is just because I can’t stand to leave you. And it suddenly hit me  _ why _ I don’t want to leave you. I guess after living together all this time, you got under my defenses. The ice cream thing was the final straw.” She shrugged casually, apparently unaware that he was possibly suffering from major head trauma. “I’m in love with you Xander. I don’t want to hide from it anymore. I don’t want to pass this by and end up realizing too late...” She moved forward slightly, nearly straddling his groin. “I love you,” she declared earnestly, looking him in the eye, her own eyes shining with tears.

Trying to ignore the sudden stirring in his pants, Xander quietly reached up, and cupped her face in both hands. She bit her lip nervously, and he smiled wonderingly at her, feeling like his heart was going to shoot out of the top of his head, it had leapt so high in his throat. As a slow smile spread across her lips, he gently tugged on her head, wincing at the slight pain in his right hand. Just before their lips met, he leaned forward, and rested his forehead against hers. “I love you, Buffy,” he whispered.

“I know,” Buffy smiled down at him playfully. “I’m so sorry I fought it for so long. I was so stupid…”

“Shh!” Xander shushed her, then closed the gap between them, planting a tender kiss on her lips. “I love you…I love you so much…” he murmured over and over, and Buffy moaned happily as she scooted forward a few inches, finally centering herself directly over his hips.

“Oh god,” she groaned into Xander’s mouth when he lifted his pelvis slightly, unconsciously rubbing himself against her.

“Mmm,” Xander moaned agreeably as he slipped his tongue between her lips to explore her mouth. When he wrapped his tongue skillfully around hers, and drew it into his own mouth, she gasped and ground her hips against him frantically. “Oh god, Buff…” he gasped in turn, unable to stop himself from bucking against her.

Buffy slowly pulled away, looking him in the eye, and holding his gaze. She began deliberately grinding her pelvis against him as she spoke. “Xan…I know it’s technically kind of fast, but…I think we’ve waited long enough, don’t you?” She winked seductively, and slowly rolled her hips.

“Oh god, please, yes!” Xander moaned, gasping as she pressed herself against his now almost painfully swollen shaft again and again. “T-too many clothes!” he complained, reaching for the hem of her skirt.

Buffy startled him, to say the least, when she immediately stood up, and proceeded to literally tear every scrap of clothing from both of their bodies. “Slayer strength can definitely come in handy sometimes,” she said with a smirk once they were surrounded by a scattered circle of shredded bits of fabric. Seeing his slightly dazed expression, she giggled, and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll buy you new ones.” 

“Don’t want new ones. Want to stay in here with you, like this,” he murmured, staring in awe at her naked form. He decided that if by some fluke it turned out he did have a head injury, he never wanted to recover. This little hallucination he might be having was really the best thing ever. Screw reality. Better yet, he could just screw Buffy! Right now seemed like a good time. He cackled loudly at the insanity of his sudden mental ramblings, and when Buffy raised an eyebrow questioningly, he shrugged sheepishly. “Sorry, my inner raving lunatic just kicked into overdrive.”

Shaking her head slightly, Buffy grinned wickedly, and climbed back on top of him. “Well, lunatic or not, I can’t say I have any objections to keeping a naked Xander in my bedroom,” she commented in a low, husky tone as she sat back against his thighs, gazing down at him hungrily. 

Xander lay sprawled beneath her, licking his lips unconsciously as he stared at her bare breasts. Buffy moaned softly, and ran her hands up his arms, then down over his chest. After a too-brief pause to play with his nipples, she moved on, caressing his stomach. Xander sent a quick, silent thank you to the gods that he’d developed quite a lot of muscle tone in the last few years. He now had a pretty well developed six-pack that most definitely wasn’t there a few years ago. After tracing a fingertip over the hard ridges of his abdomen, Buffy glanced down at his erection, which protruded upwards just in front of the juncture of her thighs. Xander inhaled sharply when she quickly slid one hand down from his abs to wrap her fingers around the long, thick shaft, sending an almost painful jolt of pleasure through his groin.

As she began stroking firmly up and down, Xander groaned loudly, squeezing his eye shut, and pressing his head back against the pillows. Unsurprisingly, he almost immediately felt the tingling in his balls that warned of an impending orgasm. He quickly pulled Buffy down against his chest, and rolled them over so he was kneeling above her, pushing her hand away from his aching cock in the process. “If you keep doing that, we’ll be done before we even begin.” he admitted embarrassedly, dropping a hot, hard kiss on her mouth before he began nibbling his way across her jaw to her ear. “I haven’t even started with you, yet,” he whispered, sucking the fleshy lobe into his mouth briefly before sitting back on his heels, between her legs, to take a more thorough look at her. Mirroring her earlier actions, he ran his hands lightly up her arms, then left his sore right hand on her shoulder as he lightly caressed first one breast, then the other with his left, lifting the soft mounds, and brushing his thumb over each nipple in turn. “Sorry I messed up my hand,” he mumbled ruefully.

“S’okay…you’re doing…ahh…fine,” Buffy gasped as he pinched a nipple.

“Hmm.” Xander nodded, keeping his expression serious, almost clinical while she writhed under his continued ministrations. “You know, there are lots of things I can do just fine one-handed,” he informed her matter of factly.

Buffy shocked him by making a very suggestive gesture over his crotch, a wide, playful grin on her face. “Not that!” he laughed, then thought a moment. “Well, yes that,” he conceded, nodding slightly, “but I was talking about this.” He flipped his eyebrows lecherously, and quickly slid down, lowering his face to her sex. Without giving her time to react, he used the thumb and forefinger of his good hand to spread her folds, and covered her clit with his mouth, flicking his tongue over it a few times before slowly dragging it lower to probe her opening.

“Xander!” she yelped loudly, arching off the bed.

“Shh! Keep it down! Vamps!” Xander reminded her, smirking, and jerking his head toward the door. When she moaned, bit her lip, and nodded meekly, he lowered his mouth again, sucking and nibbling on her clit as he slowly pushed one, then two, and finally three fingers into her. He slowly pumped them in and out, carefully curling his fingers upward while he continued to experiment on the tiny nub at the top of her folds.

He watched intently as Buffy moaned loudly, and began thrashing and writhing beneath him, making note of he actions that earned him the most heated responses. “Xander…oh God! Don’t stop! Please don’t stop! Please! Oh god, please let me cum!” Buffy wailed suddenly, clutching his head in both hands. 

Xander chuckled briefly, but obediently continued to suck as hard as he could, and thrust his fingers inside her warm, wet passage until she came with a sharp cry, moisture flooding over his fingers. “You’re incredible…” he whispered, moving up the bed to lie next to her. He nuzzled the side of her neck, and gently stroked her stomach until her breathing calmed back down.

“Mmm…I think that’s my line,” Buffy murmured, slowly opening her eyes, and smiling dreamily at him.

Xander laughed happily. “Hey, I never said I don’t know what to do with women…I just have trouble convincing them to let me prove it.” He playfully licked her neck, then propped himself up on one elbow, smiling affectionately at her contented, drowsy expression.

"You’d better not try to convince any other women to let you do that to them!” Buffy mock scowled. “You’re my Xander. They can all just get their own!” She sat up suddenly, her face scrunching up thoughtfully. “Too bad Warren’s gone. We could totally make a fortune selling Xan-bots!” she exclaimed eagerly.

“And I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that little bit of insanity,” Xander promised, barely repressing a snicker, and giving her a slow nod of acknowledgement when she shuddered, her own words finally sinking in.

“Thank you!” Buffy groaned, burying her face in his neck.

“You’re so cute when you’re crazy,” Xander quipped, rubbing her back gently, and enjoying the feel of her bare skin against his.

“Good thing, since that’s most of the time,” Buffy groaned, draping herself across his body. When his erection poked against her stomach, she reached down, and ran her fingers along his length from root to tip, flicking a nail gently across the weeping slit, then trailing her hand back down to lightly tickle his balls. “Hi,” she murmured, grinning wickedly.

“Gah!” Xander jerked to an almost upright position, then fell back against the pillows. His heart rate skyrocketed from the surge of arousal rushing through his body; he had calmed down a bit earlier in his determination to make her come before they moved on. 

“Yeah, I was wondering when you were gonna want to take care of this…” Buffy chuckled mischievously, her teasing strokes starting back up the underside of his shaft.

Before her hand could make another trip along his cock, Xander growled, and pushed her over onto her back. He quickly but gently pushed her legs apart, and moved between them. Hovering over her, he rested most of his weight on the elbow of his right arm, and used his good hand to rub the swollen head against her clit, causing both of them to moan. He waited until she looked him in the eye, then tilted his head questioningly, waiting for her permission to go any further.

“What are you waiting for? An invitation?” she teased, her warm smile and soft tone belying her slightly mocking words. “Please Xan…” she added pleadingly, wrapping her legs around his waist, and trying to pull him toward her.

“Just checking before it’s too late to take anything back,” he explained, lowering his head for a kiss as he slowly pushed inside her. Suddenly, Buffy hissed painfully, and he froze. “Are you okay?” He studied her face worriedly as he began to pull back.

Buffy stopped him with a hand on his hip. “Yeah. I’m good, it’s just been a long time,” she replied, blushing slightly.

“Just let me know if I go too fast, okay?” he requested, then covered her mouth with his own, pushing his tongue into her mouth, where it leisurely wrestled with her own while his cock slowly slid further into her. They both moaned happily when he finally managed to ease his full length inside her.

“Oh God, you’re perfect,” Buffy sighed contentedly, wrapping her arms around his neck, and holding him against her for a moment while they both adjusted to the sensation of him being inside of her. “It’s like you were made for me,” she murmured somewhat wonderingly, then snorted. “I never thought anyone really said things like that,” she muttered, rolling her eyes self-deprecatingly.

“I’ll forgive you, this time, ‘cause it’s true,” Xander chuckled, and lowered his head, sucking the nipple he had just discovered under his cheek into his mouth, and nibbling lightly. “Oh my god! S-Slayer muscles! I f-forgot about those,” he groaned without thinking when she clenched around him in response.

“Hey!” Buffy frowned, and swatted his head. “Don’t remind me you know about those particular Slayer muscles. Especially the first time you’re inside me!” She glared up at him, her lower lip sticking out in a greatly exaggerated pout.

“Sorry,” Xander cringed at his stupidity. “You really don’t need to be jealous,” he was quick to assure her, kissing his way up her neck to capture her lips again. “It was nothing.” He shuddered slightly, suddenly remembering his unfortunate visit to Faith’s cheap, sleazy motel room, when she’d nearly killed him. “You’re the only Slayer I ever really cared about,” he added emphatically, smiling fondly at her. 

“Okay, we don’t need to talk about it ever again, then. It never happened.” Buffy smiled adoringly at him, and his heart skipped a beat at seeing that smile finally directed at him. “I love you,” she whispered urgently, her eyes shining, and quickly kissed him on the nose, forehead, each cheek, and then finally on the lips. She chuckled when his cock jumped eagerly at her words, and the awkward moment was gone as quickly as it came. Rocking her hips gently to encourage him to move, she slid her hands down over his back to grab his butt, and growled. “God, you’re hot!”

Xander smirked, and began thrusting gently inside her, playfully quirking an eyebrow to let her know he was willingly bypassing the perfect opportunity to make a joke about the cons of having sex with room-temperature vampires. “Not as hot as you, baby,” he joked instead, his empty eyelid twitching as he unconsciously tried to wink.

“Oh, shut up and kiss me,” she giggled, swatting his bottom playfully. Xander growled, and hungrily attacked her mouth. Soon, their tongues were busily mimicking his movements inside her, sliding in and out of each other’s mouths in time with his slow, leisurely thrusts. 

After a few minutes, they simultaneously sped up the pace, and Xander realized, when his cock became almost excruciatingly hard, that this couldn’t last much longer. Grunting, he rose up on his knees, hooked his good hand under Buffy’s right knee, pushed it up over his shoulder, and began thrusting harder. He leaned back slightly, changing the angle a bit, looking for just the right angle…suddenly Buffy let out a loud, almost inhuman keening sound, and her slick inner walls began rippling around him, tightening with every thrust. He’d never felt anything like it, even during his experience with that other, unmentionable, set of Slayer muscles. It was as if someone was stroking him firmly from root to tip, only vastly better than any hand had ever felt. “Buffy!” he growled loudly. “Oh god, yeah! Keep…keep d-doing that.” As his balls tightened painfully, he lost all sense of rhythm, and began thrusting more quickly and more deeply. Buffy immediately shrieked, and clamped down tightly on his cock, causing his eye to roll back in his head as he screamed out his own release. Waves of pleasure blasted through him, making it seem as though every cell, from the top of his head to the soles of his feet, was exploding. His erratically pumping hips gradually slowed until he slumped against Buffy, nearly losing consciousness. Fortunately, she seemed to be too preoccupied with her own orgasm-induced blackout to notice. Deciding she had the right idea, he closed his eye and let himself drift as well.

******

Xander wasn’t sure how much time had passed when a frantic knocking at the bedroom door slowly dragged him from a comfortable, contented doze. “Buffy? Are you okay in there?” Dawn’s voice bellowed. “Xander? Are you guys alright?”

Xander tried to ignore her, but Buffy, whom, he realized with a pleased grin, he was still on top of, _ and _ buried deep inside, poked him insistently until he groaned, and lifted himself up on his elbows. “I’d love you even more if you’d just let me sleep,” he whispered pleadingly, and Buffy smirked.

“She’s not gonna let us, and you know it!” she grumbled, shaking her head irritably. 

As if to illustrate her sister’s point, Dawn unleashed an even louder barrage of knocking. “If you guys don’t answer, I’m gonna make Spike knock down this door!” she threatened. “You don’t have to come out, we just want to know if you’re okay!” she added. “We’re pretty sure those were just good sex type screams, but then you got really quiet, and now you’re starting to scare me…”

“Go away!” Buffy bellowed loudly, prompting Xander to wince, and roll off of her so he could hide his head beneath one of the small mountain of pillows they were now half-buried under. 

“Sheesh! Rude much? You should be glad I was concerned enough to check on you. What if you had been attacked by sucubuses…succubae…sex demons or something?” Dawn yelled back.

“Then you would probably still be ruining some really good afterglow, you brat!” Xander yelled. He and Buffy began laughing quietly at the answering happy squeal from the younger Summers.

“Oh my god! You two finally came to your senses! Hey, what time is it? If it’s before midnight I win the pool!” Suddenly, she squealed again. “11:18! I love you guys! $782 is going to come in really handy when I go shopping for school with Willow next month!”

“There’s a pool?” Buffy bellowed angrily, “Who else was in on it?” she asked, gritting her teeth, her eyes flashing dangerously.

“Could we work out who we need to kill some other time?” Xander whispered hotly in her ear. Buffy looked like she was about to protest when he pressed his renewed erection into the side of her leg, and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

“Mmm,” she moaned agreeably then called, “Dawnie?”

“Yeah?” her sister replied, sounding very amused.

“Unless-ah! Xander, stop that for a minute!” she scolded, trying half-heartedly to swat his hand away from her dripping opening. 

Xander ignored her, and eased two fingers deep inside her, looking for the spot he knew would make her squirm just the way he liked. “Unless you want to be traumatized for life, you’d better step away from that door!” he finished for Buffy, who had been rendered speechless by his stroking fingers.

“Ewwww!” Dawn shrieked. Her exclamation was quickly followed by the sound of stockinged feet running down the hallway toward the living room.

“I thought she’d never leave,” Xander muttered, rolling onto his stomach, and lowering his head to nibble on Buffy’s left nipple as he continued to explore her body.

“Mmm,” Buffy nodded happily. Flexing her muscles, she quickly reversed their positions, draping herself across his chest, her nipple still in his mouth. He continued to suck and nibble the sensitive nub, and she began to grind her clit against his stomach. “God, that feels good, Xan,” she murmured, then carefully pulled away from his mouth and hand so she could scoot down his body. Xander’s mumbled protests about losing his ‘nummy treat’ ended quickly when she took him in her mouth.

“Buffy! God!” he exclaimed as she swallowed him down. His whole body went rigid, and he struggled to keep himself from thrusting hard into her face. He was stunned to find himself dangerously close to the edge already. “Oh my god, you can’t…” 

“Why not?” Buffy released him, and smiled up at him, batting her eyelashes innocently. He felt a thrill run up his spine at the predatory look in her eyes. “Little Xander doesn’t seem to mind…” she commented, dipping her head to probe the slit at his tip with her tongue.

“No, he really, really doesn’t,” Xander agreed with a moan. “Of course, he’s got a one track mind when it comes to pretty, naked Buffy flesh.” He grinned mischievously at her, and reached down to rub his thumb over her breast. “But, ah, he’s finding it hard to control himself this evening, and if you keep that up, he might lose focus.”

“Y-yeah, I know what you mean,” Buffy nodded, her eyes drifting shut for a moment. “Little Buffy is having a hard time concentrating with so much gorgeous Xander skin, too.”

“‘Little Buffy’?” Xander snickered. “You’ve got to be kid-ah!”

Buffy quieted him by swinging her leg over his body and quickly impaling herself on his (he liked to believe), not especially  _ little _ friend. “Little Buffy,” she stated pointedly, squeezing him tightly with her inner muscles, causing him to cry out. “I mean, I haven’t been with that many guys, but I have been told that I have a nice, tight, little….” she trailed off, and squeezed again.

“Buffy!” Xander gasped. “God!” Who was this woman, and what had she done to his sweet, sometimes even a little prudish, Buffy?

“Mmm, you are a god,” Buffy moaned, grabbing his shoulders, throwing back her head, and beginning to ride him slowly. “You feel so good, Xan. Even better than I imagined. Now I know why you always wear those baggy jeans.” She winked at him coyly, squeezing again.

“You’re killing me Buff,” Xander let out a sort of moaning chuckle of disbelief. 

“Too much?” she teased. “Okay, I won’t talk anymore.” She mimicked zipping her lips. Then, making sure he was looking, she slid her hand down her neck to caress her own breast, bringing her other hand up to join in the fun.

“Gah!” Xander gasped, his hips thrusting upwards erratically as his brain began to go into terminal meltdown.

“What’s wrong?” Buffy asked innocently, pinching her nipples, and moaning. 

When she began to trail one hand down over her stomach, Xander groaned helplessly. “You’re evil…”

“Uh huh…and you love it!” Buffy winked again. Licking her fingers, she reached down, and began stroking her clit in time with her movements up and down his shaft. “Mmm.”

“Don’t,” Xander moaned weakly, and pushed her hand away. “Let me do it.” Buffy sighed contentedly as he began gently rubbing her clit with his thumb. Leaning back, she braced herself against his thighs, and looked down, watching as she continued to raise and lower herself on him. Xander felt her inner muscles begin to tighten as she stared in fascination.

“Oh god, Xander, that’s-” She let out a loud groan as he thrust vigorously, forcing her to quicken her pace to keep up. “Xander! Oh! God! Xan…” She suddenly stopped moving as an orgasm ripped through her body, causing her to tighten around him with vice-like intensity. “Xander!” she screamed, her body going completely rigid, while Xander looked on, struggling to fight off his own climax.

“Holy shit…” he muttered, blinking rapidly when Buffy finally collapsed limply on his chest.

“Fuck, yeah,” Buffy giggled weakly. “I know you didn’t…” She squeezed her vaginal muscles around his highly sensitized flesh, prompting him to gasp delightedly. “I can’t move just yet…” she giggled again. “Gimme a sec,” she moaned, squeezing him again, as she lay, otherwise motionless, panting against his neck.

“I knew all that ‘Slayer Stamina’ stuff was a crock,” Xander teased, kissing her on the forehead.

“It’s real, but I think you broke it,” Buffy panted. “I never felt like this before.” 

“Um, that’s a good thing, right?” Xander asked, slightly worried.

“Of course it is!” Buffy finally sat up, and swatted him playfully on the chest. “You just surprised me…” she protested laughingly, slowly rocking her hips.

“You like surprises?” Xander grinned playfully, cocking his head to one side.

“Uh, yeah. Why?” Buffy asked suspiciously.

“Good!” he exclaimed, pushing her off him and to the side.

“Hey!” she protested loudly. “We weren’t done yet!”

“Shhh! We’re not done,” Xander agreed, pushing on her shoulder until she rolled onto her stomach. “Get your knees under you…spread ‘em out a bit more.” He ran his hands over her smooth back, and gently caressed her butt, causing her to moan happily into the pillow she was now hugging. “You’re so beautifulh” he breathed, trailing his fingers down between her cheeks to dip them in her wet slit. “Mmm, you’re so wet…”

“Oh, stop sucking up, and fuck me already!” Buffy growled, wiggling her ass impatiently.

“Yes, ma’am!” Xander chuckled, giving her a mock salute. He lined himself up behind her, and immediately thrust into her to the hilt. “Fuck,!” he grunted, slowly pulling out, only to slam back in immediately, setting a hard, fast pace that quickly sent Buffy over the edge again, moaning loudly, and convulsing beneath him. Xander closed his eye, and clenched his teeth, reciting the names of various demons and how to kill them as he struggled to hold back his own release just a little longer. Just when he was sure he wasn’t going to make it, her tightly clenched muscles finally loosened around him. “God, you’re fucking amazing,” he murmured, beginning to move again.

“I was gonna say that,” Buffy panted. “Are you…ooooh god! Are you trying to kill me?” she accused, giggling weakly.

“Yeah. I'm a demon assassin. I've been waiting for my chance for years!” He chuckled somewhat breathlessly, and pushed in deeper.

“Huh. Devious plan. Brilliant. Oh god…just like that!” Buffy ordered, pushing back against him.

Xander leaned forward, and wrapped his arms around her waist. Pressing his forehead against the back of her neck, he continued slamming harder and faster inside her. For several minutes, the sounds of panting, moaning and slapping flesh filled the room as they moved together. Finally, feeling his orgasm building unavoidably, Xander reached down with his left hand, and started quickly stroking her clit. “Buff…I’m gonna cum. I-I can’t hold off anymore. Oh god! Buffy! I’ve gotta cum!” he babbled helplessly as his balls drew up tight against his body. “Fuck! I’m cumming!” He roughly tweaked her clit between his fingers and, to his relief, felt her inner walls fluttering around his cock, just as an intense orgasm rushed through him. “Oh god!” he moaned roughly, feeling his cock twitch over and over until he decided somewhat worriedly that his body must be nearly as dry as the Sahara. 

“Xander!” Buffy shrieked loudly when her own climax overwhelmed her. They continued rocking weakly against each other for several seconds before collapsing limply on the bed.

Xander leisurely moved to one side, wrapping himself around Buffy. After reaching down to pull the comforter over them, he snuggled into the pillows beside her. “Hey,” he murmured sleepily. “I love you.”

“Hey,” Buffy smiled, looking back over her shoulder. “I love you, too,” she whispered softly, then closed her eyes, quickly drifting off to sleep.

Happier than he’d ever felt in his life, Xander pulled her more tightly against his chest, nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck, and let himself follow her.

 


End file.
